Enough Maths, Let's Makeout
by DaiP
Summary: Semi-cannon Naley: Haley's tutoring Nathan, but Nathan has more productive activities in mind. Will the captain of the bastketball team convince her to see past the hot stud school jock to just the hot stud inside? He'll get her one way or another.
1. Chapter 1

For Maggie, the romantic.

* * *

_She was wearing a pure white sundress, one so sheer he caught tentalising glimpses of the outline of her body when her movements caught the sunlight. The spaghetti thin straps clinging to her smooth shoulders made him want to tear the dress off and shield her form anyone else with the same urge at the same time._

_They were sitting in the sunshine in a field of white flower, like on one of those ads for fabric softener or deodorant. Light bounced off her burnished coffee coloured hair, adding shoots of gold through its wavy mass._

_He didn't question their presence there, only let himself bask in the sunshine that seemed to feel all the more dazzling as it passed through her. He had the niggling thought at the back of his mind that the captain of the basketball team should _not_ be thinking about frolicking in flower fields with virgins decked out in full sacrificial white dress, but it flew out of his mind as she leaned in closer to him._

_She was so close he could smell the citrus scented shampoo from her hair that would waft his way whenever she leaned over him to help with a maths question. _

_He couldn't seem to focus on her eyes, for some reason, when all the other details were clear as the image of her face that always distracted him from everything else during the day. And that frustrated him more than was warranted._

_She was saying something to him, her lips forming words that reached his ears through cotton wool. _

_It was hard trying to concentrate on the muffled voice when his brain, both of his brains, were so occupied with other things..._

_...than..._

_...Nathan..._

_Frissons of sensation travelled down his spine at the sound of his name on her lips. He wanted to close his eyes and savour the moment, but she was still saying something..._

_...up...Nathan..._

_...wake up..._

"Nathan! Wake up!"

Persistent shaking roused him from his impromptu nap. Nathan sat up and wiped the sleep from his eyes with the heel of a hand.

A disgruntled Haley with her hands on her hips greeted Nathan as he focused his eyes. Man, she looked adorable when she was pissed.

"I was gone for two minutes and you feel asleep!"

"Being the King of High School is a demanding job." Nathan stretched his arms behind his head and leaned back grinning.

"Ha! King!" Haley snorted. "You are so full of it. Maybe I should tutor you from the next table from now on to avoid bumping into your ego!"

"Aww, don't do that," Nathan put one hand to his chest in a gesture of mock hurt. "If you stay close enough, you'll see my ego's not the only thing about me that's big." He winked at her with what he hoped was his best flirtatious look.

But Haley remained unmoved, not even batting an eyelash at his not so subtle flirting. As if he had not spoken at all, she began packing her bag.

"If you don't want to check the worksheets for questions before I go, that's your problem. Just don't come crying to me if you fail Monday's quiz."

"If I do, you're going to be waiting to comfort me with arms wide open, right?"

"I think you're confusing me with Peyton, and don't you mean with _legs_ wide open?" Haley spared him a withering look without pausing as she shoved books into her bag.

Nathan frowned, the teasing glint fading from his eyes.

"Why do you always assume I'm some kind of brainless jock only after one thing? And me and Peyton are--"

"I don't care what you and Peyton are doing. And I've never said you're a brainless jock, don't put words in my mouth--don't!" Haley stopped him with a look as Nathan opened his mouth to defend himself. "You want to say something like 'That's not all I'd like to put in your mouth'."

Nathan wanted to protest against her utterly inaccurate imitation of him, complete with the caveman 'I-don't-know-duhh' voice, but Haley only carried on without giving him a chance to interrupt.

"With charm like that, how can I ever think you're a brainless jock only after one thing?"

Haley zipped her bag shut and hoisted it onto her shoulder.

"I'm going home. Hope you at least pass the quiz on Monday." She added almost as an afterthought.

"So you do care about me." Nathan smirked up at Haley as she turned to leave.

"I just don't want to have to tutor _you_ anymore." She threw over her shoulder and didn't look back.

Haley made sure her back remained straight and that her steps were even and unhurried as she walked away from the table at the park where she always tutored Nathan. She forced herself to appear unaffected even as her heart hammered like Thumper's foot in her chest.

Why did she have to tutor Nathan Scott? Of all the failing students they could've assigned her, why her? She didn't turn down the assignment when she was told she had to tutor him. Just because the basketballer-cheer-leader types probably didn't even know the way to the library did not mean she couldn't share the same breathing space as one for three hours a week. And she was in the same English class as Lucas, Nathan's brother. They were in the same group for a group report a few months ago and he seemed like a nice enough guy.

She told herself not to be a snob and to reserve judgement until she knew for sure what Nathan was like. She even got as far as admitting to herself that he was kind of cute before he opened his mouth and said hello to her breasts. His eyes never left that region, but the things that came out of his mouth made Haley feel as if she was under constant attack from a barrage of subtle and not-so-subtle flirting. He seemed to delight in provoking her, and she couldn't help but react to him every single time.

What was worse, Haley _knew_ he meant none of the things he said. It was like second nature to him, this continuous effort at trying to get into the pants of anything with mammary glands.

As she started her car's engine and backed out of the parking lot, Haley didn't let herself question the emotions beyond annoyance and exasperation at Nathan's careless words.

Nathan sighed as he followed Haley's figure with his eyes until her car made a turn and disappeared from sight.

Haley was like no other girl he'd ever encountered. She never reacted like he expected to his flirting and teasing. She defied all the rules he knew about girls, and he knew a _lot_.

No big deal, Nathan began packing his own bag. It was all part of the challenge. It's not a bad thing to be kept on his toes. After all, he would get what he wanted, he always did.

And Haley James was it.

* * *

"Dude, seriously? A field of white flowers?" Lucas spared Nathan a snicker as he looked up briefly from the television screen.

"Focus on the problem at hand here." Nathan snapped and grabbed a can of soda from the fridge before slumping down on the couch next to Lucas.

"Okay, okay." Lucas put up his hands in placation and turned his attention back to the game on TV. "Don't get your panties in a twist, Scott."

Nathan threw a pillow at Lucas, which was deftly avoided. "Come on. You've been in her English class since September. You're not going to write any best sellers any time soon, might as well make the class a little useful by telling me what Haley's like."

"You're asking me what she's like when you've spent more time with her in the past three weeks than I have in the whole term?" Lucas raised his eyebrows and looked away from the TV.

"I've tried! I'm still trying! She's got better defences than...than Kobe Bryant in a game!" Nathan finish his soda in one swallow and threw it into the waste basket on the other side of the room with a resounding clank that mirrored his frustration.

"Nate, Haley James is not one of the girls who hang out on the side lines waiting for you with a towel and Gatorade just so they can brag to their friends that they _touched _the most popular guy in school. She's not going to fall for your lines because she's not superficial enough to care about your social status and, well, because they make you sound like you belong in a bad eighties porn film."

For the second time that day, Nathan's protests remained unvoiced as Lucas put up a hand to make Nathan hear him out first.

"Treat her like a person you're trying to get to know instead of a _chick_ whose name you won't remember the next day. Find out what she likes, tell her about what you like. Be the guy you are with your friends."

"Be yourself?" Nathan asked. "If I wanted shitty advice I'd go watch _Oprah_."

"Just...be the person you are when you're with me, she's bound to like you."

Taken aback at Lucas' quiet, sincere tone, Nathan could only nod. They were always ribbing each other and challenging each other to one-on-one basketball matches, but Nathan knew Lucas would always have his back.

Even though they didn't share the same mother, the two brothers were as close as any other siblings, probably closer, considering the emotional abuse both suffered from their father. Things weren't always so great, they had their share of angst and fights, but Nathan and Lucas had both grew to realise they didn't have to live their parents' soap opera lives, and had been close friends since their second year of high school.

Silence stretched out for a few moments in the room as both boys pretended to not care about what had just been said.

"So..." Lucas coughed. "A field of white flowers, huh?"

"I knew I should've left that bit out," Nathan muttered under his breath.

Obviously having heard what his brother said under his breath, Lucas continued making fun of Nathan. "No, no! That's important. Field of flowers means you're serious now. Just remember to name your first kid after me and, er, make sure to change your pants before the wedding." Lucas directed a mock look of disgust at Nathan's fly.

Nathan got up without a word and grabbed another soda from the fridge. Coming back to stand directly beside Lucas, he opened the can and up ended the entire content onto Lucas' lap.

"What the f--Nathan! You asshole!" Lucas jumped up, causing splashes of soda to flow onto the couch, staining the beige fabric.

Nathan grabbed his bag and started up the stairs that led to the second floor. Lucas may be a total girl sometimes, but he was right about one thing - Operation Haley James needed another strategy. Let's see how long she'll last under his renewed attacks.

"Mum is going to kill you!" Lucas yelled after Nathan as he dabbed at his jeans and the couch with wads of tissue.

Nathan smirked. It was worth it.

* * *

_N.B. Thumper is the rabbit in the Disney film Bambi. His foot thumps the ground at a very fast pace when he's excited, like when he sees a lady rabbit. =D_


	2. Chapter 2

Peyton winced as something small and solid hit her on the side of the head. She stifled a yelp and turned, after checking the teacher was still absorbed in "The Notebook" at the front of the classroom, to Nathan, sitting a few tables behind her to the right.

"For the last time, Nathan, I am _not_ helping you!" She hissed.

"But I don't know how to do question four!" Nathan whined, without any attempt at lowering his voice.

"Then maybe you should've spent more time listening to Haley than looking at her breasts!"

Nathan looked offended at the suggestion. "Why would I listen to her when I can look at her breasts?"

The supervising teacher for the test, Ms Brown, looked up at the voices and glared in their direction.

Nathan took no notice of the warning and continued speaking to Peyton's already turned back.

"Come on, Peyton, help me out here."

Nathan continued to throw small projectiles at Peyton as she carried on ignoring him. The paper balls and other various items from Nathan's pencil case bounced off her back and fell to the floor with audible clicks and clacks. Peyton tried her best to concentrate on her own test paper until she felt something hit her head and lodge in her blonde curls.

"_Nathan_!" Peyton whirled around in her seat while trying not to jump up and strangle the hell out of Nathan Scott. Ms Brown looked up absently and shushed them before quickly going back to her book.

"What's the answer to question four?" Nathan asked in a voice that sounded like they weren't under exam conditions at all and he hadn't just been throwing things at her to get her attention.

"I'm not going to help you cheat, Nathan."

"All right, give me a clue, then."

"That's still cheating!"

"But I can't fail this test, otherwise I won't be able to play with the Ravens this season!"

"At least then I won't have to put up with you during practise and you'll get to spend more time with Haley." Peyton shot back acidly.

"Haley doesn't want to tutor me--" Nathan stopped before he could continue as the figure of Ms Brown blocked his sight from Peyton.

"Mr Scott, I take it that the reason you're having a nice chat with Miss Sawyer is because you've finished your paper?" She lifted a brow that suggested she knew the answer was of the negative.

Peyton felt a little sorry for Nathan. The guy may be a jerk sometimes, but he was still her friend, and she certainly didn't want him to fail, knowing how important basketball was to him.

"Nathan was just asking--" She was interrupted before she could say that he was only borrowing an eraser from her.

"Yes, I'm sure he was asking for your help, well you can help after school, in detention. Now finish your test without another word and be glad I haven't failed you both immediately on the spot."

Peyton was so shocked she couldn't even offer any protest. Looking around, she noticed a few smirks and apathetic glances from the other students, and the sympathetic look from her friend Brooke sitting a few tables in front.

And Nathan, the jackass, looked completely unconcerned.

Brooke narrowed her eyes and drew a finger across her neck in a mimic of beheading, then pointed at Nathan. Peyton smiled weakly at the silent promise in her friend's kohl lined eyes and vowed to do the same as soon as they got out of this classroom.

* * *

"So, in killing Banquo, who is representative of the loyalty to King Duncan in himself, Macbeth has essentially silenced the voice of his own conscience." Mr. Julius remarked with relish, talking right through the sharp peel of the bell that signified the end of class, ignoring the impatient teenagers in front of him shoving things into their bags, preparing to make their escape.

Not in as much hurry as the rest of the class, Haley methodically zipped up her pencil case and put everything back in her backpack.

The classroom was almost deserted, except for a still muttering Mr. Julius cleaning the blackboard, when Haley was about to leave and felt a light touch on her shoulder. Turning, she was greeted by Lucas Scott's smile.

"Hi Haley."

"Hey Lucas."

They'd never had a long conversation before, but the memory of Nathan from last week and his association with Lucas made Haley reluctant to make small talk, and it seemed that Lucas felt a little awkward talking to her, too.

In the ensuing silence, Haley thought Lucas wanted saying something, and even began to on several occasions, but always drifted off as if not knowing how to voice his thoughts.

"This is ridiculous..." Haley muttered beneath her breath. So much for thinking Lucas was the more normal one. Nathan must have put him up to messing with her as well.

He must have heard her, because he looked at her quizzically and asked, "I'm sorry...?"

Giving up all pretence of civility and patience, Haley decided to just screw it and confront Lucas.

"Just spit it out. Did Nathan get you to _flirt_ with me like he does on some sort of stupid dare?" She said the word _flirt_ like it was mouldy food that had to be spat out.

"Nathan _flirts_ with you?"

"That's the nice way of putting it." She replied contemptuously. "You can say whatever you, or he wants, but just so you know, it doesn't make either of you the big man messing with other people! Unlike the rest of the school, I'm not blinded by your popularity or scared of your social status. You and your brother keep pushing me, I won't be responsible for my actions."

Lucas was a little taken aback by the fierce tone of the girl who always seemed so tame and good natured. Haley James had a hidden tough streak, he laughed quietly to himself, looks like Nathan is going to get more than he bargained for.

"Well?" Haley demanded impatiently as Lucas realised he'd stayed silent the whole time, preoccupied with trying to figure out how to talk to her and then considering the new side to her he'd discovered.

"I just wanted to warn you about Nathan, he can be pretty persistent when he wants to. But now I'm thinking maybe you don't need any help with his particular brand of interest."

Haley looked a little mollified by what Lucas said, but still didn't stop scowling.

"He's not actually a bad guy. I know he acts like a dickhead sometimes, but that's just all part of the front he puts up as the popular kid when everyone wants a piece of him."

"Oh, yeah, it's so hard being liked by everyone. I'll bet he's crying himself to sleep every night." Haley snorted.

Lucas frowned. "No, but you should know that being _liked_ at high school is a very volatile term. None of this popularity or social status is real, but that doesn't mean everyone can afford to be like you, to be above all the pettiness and assured of your own place in life. For some people, this is all they have."

Now it was Haley's turn to be taken aback. She knew Lucas wasn't like the other jocks in the school. He never bullied other kids or joined in the crude antics of other jocks. He always behaved in class and treated her with polite friendliness when they had to work together. But this thoughtfulness really put him above the other high school kids she knew.

"You look surprised." A corner of Lucas' lips lifted in a small smile, reminding Haley sharply of the same expression on the other Scott's face, but less cocky and more friendly.

"I know some of my friends are really living the Hollywood cliché of teenagers, but maybe you're playing the part of pious outsider as well, looking down your nose at anyone who doesn't share the same attitude. I'd say that's reverse snobbery."

Some part of Haley's mind registered the validity of what Lucas said, but she was too annoyed at that moment that he had accused her of being snobby and self righteous to consider what he'd said.

"I thought you were going to warn me about your brother," she snapped, "now you're practising to become Oprah's protégé?"

Lucas couldn't help but laugh out loud at how similar this sounded to what Nathan had said to him a few days ago when he'd accused Lucas of sounding like Oprah.

"What?" Haley's scowl deepened at the way Lucas seemed to find the situation so amusing.

"Nothing," Lucas coughed to cover up more laughter. "It's just that...you and Nathan may have more in common than either of you think."

Haley's outraged denial remained unvoiced as someone called her from the classroom door.

"Miss James." She turned to see the school counsellor's stern face. "Glad you haven't left yet, may I see you in my office, now." Although phrased as a question, the request sounded decided like an order.

"Ohhh, somebody's in trouble." Lucas teased in a sing-song voice as the counsellor turned to go without waiting to see whether Haley followed or not

"I told you you have more in common with Nate than you think, even the school counsellor is giving the evil eye to both of you."

"Whatever." With a last withering glare, Haley slung her bag over her shoulder and hurried after the school counsellor.

She was puzzled at the way she had been called to the counsellor's office. The brisk tone and disapproving expression on her face reminded Haley of the times when slackers or jocks who started fights in the cafeteria had to be called to be reprimanded. It was as if she'd done something wrong.

Haley walked through the school hallways until she reached the counsellor's office, where it seemed that a few people had already gathered, judging by the raised voices and the moving silhouette of someone against the glazed glass on the door.

Someone was standing right outside and had one ear pressed against the door. Haley recognised the student as Brooke Davis, captain of the cheerleading team.

Brooke turned at Haley's footsteps, but quickly dismissed her and continued listening in.

"Er...what are you doing?"

Snapping her head around quickly, Brooke block Haley's lips with a well manicured finger.

"Shhhh! Can't you see I'm eavesdropping? It's rude to interrupt."

Haley looked a little stunned by Brooke's admonishment and casual touch.

"I need to get in." She said stiffly with Brooke's finger still sealing her lips.

"Yeah, well so do I, but we aren't invited to the party, so just stay quiet and let me hear what they're saying."Brooke responded distractedly, ear pressed to the door once again.

Haley pulled Brooke's hand away, "no, I was asked to go in."

Brooke turned her head to Haley, and seemed to recognise her for the first time.

"Tutor gir--I mean, Haley!" She sounded...almost excited?

"That's me." Haley responded warily. The brunette in front of her looked as if she was the only who'd discovered a Louise Vuitton sale.

"You're here!"

"I am." Haley wanted to back up a step at the almost gleeful glint in Brooke's eyes.

When Brooke continued looking at her without moving, Haley asked, "can you let me pass?"

Brooke quickly stepped aside. "Of course! Go in, go in! Oh, tuto--Haley?"

Haley withdrew her outstretched hand as she was about to knock. "Yes?"

"Even if it's not true, you're still kinda awesome."

Haley wasn't sure what to make of that, so she shrugged and gave a brief knock. Without waiting for an answer, she opened the door since she knew she was expected.

What greeted her in the counsellor's office was anything but expected. The counsellor had returned to her seat behind the desk at the end of the room, the chairs to her left were occupied by Ms. Ling, the teacher in charge of assigning tutors to students who were failing, and Peyton Sawyer, the other half of the cheerleading team captaincy.

Haley instinctually smiled at Miss Ling, since she had been a tutor for some time and was quite familiar with the dark haired teacher. But then she noticed that Miss Ling's attention was completely focused on someone in the centre of the room, as was the attention of every other person in the room.

That was when she saw Nathan Scott, giving what she later thought was probably the best performance of his life.

No one heard her come in, and so Haley was able to watch Nathan continue with some sort of riveting story, as everyone was watching him with mouths slightly ajar, either in amazement, disbelief, or a combination of both.

"...and then she threatened to tutor me from another table saying that my ego was too big!"

Nathan seemed to have reached a break in the narrative and paused for breath.

The counsellor looked up and saw Haley standing at the door.

"Miss James, now that you're here you can help us verify whether Mr. Scott's..._account_ is true."

And even as everyone's attention focused on Nathan a second ago, now three pairs of eyes all swerved to her in unison.

Apart from the counsellor, everyone else seemed to regard her with shock and speculation in their faces, as if they were looking at her for the first time and she had horns on top of her head.

"What do I need to verify?" Haley closed the door behind her and made her way towards the counsellor's desk, making sure to walk as far away from Nathan as possible.

She could feel his gaze on her like a physical touch as he followed her movement, but Haley forced herself to ignore his presence and maintain eye contact with the counsellor.

"I failed maths."

Haley took a deep breath to control her annoyance. Just like Nathan to try and divert the attention back to himself, he just couldn't accept that the universe did not evolve around him.

"Well, if you did, it's not for lack of trying on my part."

"Oh, you tried, you tried so hard to come on to me that you didn't tutor me at all!"

Of all the things Haley expected him to say, this was the least likely, and the least ridiculous! The concept was so ridiculous, in fact, that it was all she could do to stop herself from bursting into laughter in the middle of what seemed to be a very serious situation.

Nathan turned to the other people in the office. "She doesn't deny it."

"I don't deny it because there is nothing to deny!" Haley snapped. "What is your problem? Just because the great Nathan Scott found something he couldn't' succeed in he has to blame someone else?"

Haley caught a flash of cold anger in Nathan's eyes, but it was quickly swept away by the glint of determination.

"You were supposed to help me, but you didn't do a very good job."

At this point, the counsellor spoke.

"Miss James, as little as I trust Mr Scott's outlandish claims, we have no records of student progress for Mr Scott under your tutelage." At this, Miss Ling nodded and gave an apologetic look to Haley.

" You know a record must be kept for all students been tutored, and you have always followed the rules. Furthermore, you have never held a tutoring session on school grounds, so we have no guarantee that they did occur. Mr Scott has shown no improvements in his math grades, and we can only deduce that the fault lies with you."

Haley mentally kicked herself for agreeing to Nathan's suggestion of tutoring him at a local park and not bothering to keep the records up to date. Nathan had always refused to do the practise test papers she prepared for him and never asked any questions. She had no idea whether he understood something or not, but held the sneaking suspicion that he understood more than he let her believe. She was waiting to see the result of this test before doing anything about the records, but that seemed to backfire on her, judging by the stony face of the counsellor at the moment.

"Mr Scott was caught attempting to cheat during the exam with Miss Sawyer helping. The supervising teacher has told me that she heard him tell Miss Sawyer here," she gestured at Peyton, "that you didn't want to tutor him."

"I _didn't_ want to tutor him! I still don't! If he's failed then it's nothing less than what he deserves!" The words came out before Haley could stop herself. They sounded incriminating and loud in the silence that followed.

Everyone in the room, except Nathan, looked shocked at the outburst. There was even a gasp from outside where Brooke was apparently still stationed.

Haley James never lost her temper. She understood the futility of giving a damn about anything in high school that didn't affect her future. The 'popular' kids could do or say whatever they liked, it was all water off a duck's back.

And yet, Nathan got to her. Nathan, who was looking at her right now with that damn knowing smirk on his face.

How much she wouldn't give to be able to punch him in his infuriatingly handsome face right now and...handsome? Where the hell had that come from?

Haley shook her head and tried to sound as calm and unaffected as possible, like her usual self, the cool and collected Haley James everyone knew.

"What I meant to say was that I did what I was supposed to. If Nathan failed to pay attention during our tutoring sessions, then I can't make him."

Haley kept her eyes on the counsellor, who held her gaze steadily, knowing that it all rested on whether the counsellor believed her or not.

After what felt like years, but was probably only seconds, the counsellor spoke without tearing her eyes away.

"I'd like to speak to Miss James alone."

It was enough for the office to empty, leaving them alone in the room. Although Nathan hesitated for a brief moment before the counsellor glowered at him and looked pointedly at the door.

After several beats of silence, Haley finally could not help but blurt out, "you believe me, right?"

The counsellor sat back in her chair and regarded Haley with thoughtful eyes.

"Whether I believe you or not does not change anything."

"Of course it does! I don't need this kind of tarnish on my records! Not to mention not a word that's come out of Nathan's mouth was true!"

"Not _one_ word?"

Haley thought of the things she'd said to him whenever they met and reddened.

"I meant I've never...I did say that his ego was big, but...not because..."

"Miss James, I do not require you to justify yourself. I have no doubt that you have done as you said you did, and that Mr Scott is doing this for reasons known only to him."

Haley brightened immediately.

"But," the counsellor continued, "as a result of his grades, Mr Scott is now unable to represent our school in the basketball national finals this season. He is a player we can not afford to lose and Tree Hill High is too close to lose the Championship this time over something as trivial as maths...so the principal tells me." Her lips curl in disgust over the last part, clearly not in agreement with the principal.

"What has that got to do with me?" Haley had a feeling she was not going to like the answer.

"As badly as Mr Scott has done academically even with your help, I've seen an increased responsiveness from him not present with the other tutors we have assigned him in the past. He is a smart young man, and although his priorities may not be as they should, I know you can help him.

"I know you are reluctant to continue tutoring him, but this is a matter of school pride, and I am willing to write a glowing reference to any college of your choice at the end of the year."

Haley's mind was in conflict. As well as she was doing academically, her lack of involvement in school activities did not allow her to receive _glowing_ references to the colleges she considered applying. But at the cost of spending more time with Nathan Scott?

No. She told herself. Nathan shouldn't even be a consideration here. Why should she let him influence the decisions she made about the future?

Because he already had, on some sort of quest to ruin the rest of her high school life. Well he could do his worst. She was going to prove to the counsellor, Nathan, and herself that she could handle a job without letting her emotions getting in the way. And if Nathan proved to be too difficult, well, she had a few tricks up her sleeves.

Haley found herself been dismissed immediately after agreeing to the counsellor's proposition. So preoccupied with her thoughts as she walked out that she didn't even notice the ban of her existence and two cheerleaders standing behind the lockers next to the school counsellor's office.

Her mind went back to what Lucas said about Nathan.

…_he can be pretty persistent when he's set on something, and sneakier than you think… _

_...you and Nathan may have more in common than either of you think..._

Haley James found herself not having all the control in a situation for the first time in years, and didn't examine too closely why she wasn't feeling as outraged as she should.


End file.
